| Teamname: | Romanian Wolves |
| Nickname: | Lupii (The Wolves) |
| Fullname: | Romanian Wolves |
| Location: | Romania |
| Founded: | as Selecționata București |
| Ground: | Arena Zimbrilor |
| Capacity: | 2,300 |
| Coach: | Eugen Apjok |
| Captain: | Nicolaas Immelman |
| Appearances: | Florin Vlaicu (57) |
| Top Scorer: | Florin Vlaicu (314) |
| Most Tries: | Cătălin Fercu (8) |
| League: | Rugby Europe Super Cup |
| Season: | 2022 |
| Position: | Joint 5th |
| Leftarm1: | 0B0B45 |
| Body1: | 0B0B45 |
| Rightarm1: | 0B0B45 |
| Shorts1: | 0B0B45 |
| Socks1: | 0B0B45 |
| Leftarm2: | FF0000 |
| Body2: | FF0000 |
| Rightarm2: | FF0000 |
| Shorts2: | FF0000 |
| Socks2: | FF0000 |
The Romanian Wolves (Romanian: Lupii Români) is a professional Romanian rugby union team that competes annually in the Rugby Europe Super Cup.
At the end of the 2003-2004 season, both champions Dinamo Bucharest and runners-up Steaua Bucharest declined the opportunity to take part in European competitions next season, mainly for financial reasons.[1] With this in mind, the Romanian Rugby Federation decided to patch things up and create a new representative team based in Bucharest named "Selecționata București" (which could be translated as "Bucharest Representative Team") or simply "București" (translated as "Bucharest") in order to be more competitive on the international stage. Essentially, the idea was to create a team that would bring together the most valuable rugby players from the domestic championship and test them, give them a chance to prove they could be part of the senior national rugby team,[2] as well as providing some international experience for the up and coming local players. For this reason, the team was also known as "Romania A", a label that was fairly used in the Romanian sports media during the early years of the team's existence.[3] The 2004-2005 season marked the Bucharest Representative Team's debut in Europe, albeit not in the European Challenge Cup, which they were eligible for after Dinamo Bucharest withdrew, but rather in the European Shield.[4] They played Leonessa Rugby from Italy in the opening round. On December 5, 2004, the Bucharest Representative Team played their debut match at the Steaua stadium in Ghencea and emerged victorious with a score of 18-15.[5] Even with Valentin Ursache's red card elimination, the Romanians managed to achieve victory with points scored by Ion Teodorescu's try, Iulian Andrei's two penalties, and a transformation from a penalty try granted at the beginning of the second half. However, in the return match, Romania A lost with a score of 32-21,[6] resulting in their failure to qualify for the next round. Despite Lacatus and Teodorescu's two attempts, the team paid tribute to indiscipline, yellow cards being given to Alexandru Lacatus, Cornel Tatu, and Florin Poenaru.
From the 2005-06 season onwards, the Bucharest Representative Team took part in the Amlin Challenge Cup. In this particular edition, the Romanian side was placed in a group alongside Gloucester, Bayonne, and Toulon. Despite facing five defeats, they experienced a notable triumph at Stade Félix Mayol against Toulon, securing a 23-17 victory.[7] Players like Fercu, Ratiu, and Fercu once again, successfully scored three tries, with the last one being the decisive moment just three minutes before the game concluded.
In the 2006-07 season, the Romanians had a commendable performance in their group matches against Newport Dragons, Bristol, and Bayonne. They achieved a notable victory against Bayonne in Bucharest with a final score of 32-27,[8] despite being behind 12-17 at halftime. Catalin Dascalu, Costica Mersoiu, and Catalin Fercu each scored a try, with Fercu's last one proving to be decisive. However, they faced defeats against Newport with scores of 29-39 [9] and 10-66,[10] and against Bristol with scores of 3-27 [11] and 19-33.[12] In the match against Bayonne, the Bucharest Representative Team fought hard but ultimately conceded with a score of 38-31,[13] although Fercu managed to score three tries.
During the 2007-2008 season, Selectionata Bucuresti had their most successful participation on record. They achieved two victories and a draw in a group that included Worcester, Gran Parma, and Montauban. In Italy, they had a thrilling 23-23 draw [14] against Gran Parma, with Stelian Burcea, Costica Mersoiu, and Vasile Rus scoring successful attempts. In the rematch, they narrowly won 21-20,[15] with Gheorghita Bigiu and Ionut Dimofte each managing a try, and Florin Vlaicu contributing a conversion and three penalty kicks. Their second victory came against the French team Montauban, with a final score of 19-17.[16] Dimofte scored a try, which was converted by Vlaicu, who also added points from four penalty kicks. It is worth noting that the Romanian international Bogdan Balan played for the opposing team.
Starting from the 2008-2009 season, the Bucharest Representative Team underwent a transformation and became known as the Bucharest Oaks.[17] Competing alongside Bourgoin, Worcester, and Petrarca Padova, their performance was rather lackluster, with only one victory achieved during an away match against Padova. During the home game, we unfortunately succumbed to the Italians with a score of 14-20,[18] as they managed to secure one try and Ludovic Mercier successfully converted five penalties. However, in a thrilling match held in Italy, Florin Vlaicu emerged as the hero by securing the winning points through a penalty kick in the 74th minute, leading the Oaks to a triumphant 17-15 victory.[19]
In the 2009-10 edition, Bucharest Oaks secured just one victory. They emerged triumphant against Overmach Parma with a score of 21-9.[20] The points were scored by Csaba Gal and Cosmin Ratiu through tries, Florin Vlaicu with a conversion and two penalties, and Ionut Dimofte with a drop goal. The Oaks also put up a commendable performance against the French team Bourgoin, narrowly losing with a score of 19-21 at the end of the game,[21] after being tied 13-13 at halftime. A similar scenario unfolded in their match against Leeds at home, where they were leading 6-3 until the 70th minute but eventually lost with a score of 6-10.[22] However, they experienced losses against Bourgoin resulting in a score of 15-33,[23] Parma resulting in a score of 9-16 [24] and a significant defeat against Leeds with a score 0-47.[25]
During the 2010–11 season, they once again achieved the single victory feat in the pool stage of the Amlin Challenge Cup and also showcased an impressive performance at home against the esteemed French team, Stade Francais. Bucharest Oaks secured a narrow 20-19 win [26] versus Crociati, with a try scored by Catalin Nicolae and five penalties successfully executed by Danut Dumbrava. Despite scoring two tries through Madalin Lemnaru and Stelian Burcea in the match against Stade Francais, they ultimately had to accept defeat with a score of 20-29.[27] Stade Francais boasted a formidable lineup including renowned players like Hugo Bonneval, Pascal Papé, Sergio Parisse, Julien Dupuy, and Mathieu Bastareaud.
In the summer of 2011, the Romanian Rugby Federation announced that they've decided to change the team's name from Bucharest Oaks to Bucharest Wolves in order to avoid confusion with the Romanian national team,[28] also referred as "The Oaks." In the 2011-2012 edition of the Amlin Challenge Cup, the Bucharest Wolves were placed in a group with Stade Francais, Worcester, and Crociati and managed to secure two victories against the Italians. At the Arcul de Triumf stadium, they won 34-7 [29] and obtained the offensive bonus thanks to Adrian Apostol's hat-trick and Florin Vlaicu's four successful conversions and two penalty kicks. In the return game, they replicated the same performance with a 26-13 victory,[30] this time with Apostol, Flavius Dobre, and Florin Surugiu's double ensuring the offensive bonus. It's worth noting their impressive performance against Worcester in Bucharest, where they led 13-12 until the last quarter of the game, but unfortunately conceded two attempts and lost 13-24.[31]
In the 2012-2013 edition of the Amlin Challenge Cup, the Bucharest Wolves were placed in a group alongside Bath, Agen, and Calvisano. Throughout the tournament, they were able to secure 2 wins out of 6 matches. One notable triumph was their victory against the French team Agen, which took place in Bucharest on December 8, 2012. This thrilling game was filled with intense moments, and it was ultimately decided by Florin Vlaicu's remarkable penalty kick from 45 meters on the left side, resulting in a final score of 25-22.[32]
| Period | Name | |
| 2004–2008 | Bucharest Representative Team | |
| 2008–2011 | Bucharest Oaks | |
| 2011–2015 | Bucharest Wolves | |
| 2022– | Romanian Wolves |
| Romanian Wolves Rugby Europe Super Cup squad | ||
|---|---|---|
Props
Hookers
Locks
| Back row
Scrum-halves
Fly-halves
| Centres
Wings
Fullbacks
|
| (c) denotes the team captain, Bold denotes internationally capped players. * denotes players qualified to play for Romania on residency or dual nationality. |
The current coaching staff of the Romanian Wolves:
| Name | Nationality | Role | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mihai Matei | Manager | ||
| Eugen Apjok | Head coach | ||
| Paul Rusu | Assistant coach | ||
| Ionuț Pop | Strength & conditioning coach | ||
| Vlad Ilie | Team doctor | ||
| Dan Wanya-Crîngu | Team doctor | ||
| Codrin Despea | Physiotherapist |
| Year | Pool | Pos | Played | Won | Drawn | Loss | Bonus | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3rd | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 1 | 3rd | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 8 | ||
| 2 | 3rd | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 3 | 4th | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 1 | 3rd | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 4 | 3rd | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 5 | ||
| 1 | 3rd | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 4 | 3rd | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 3 | 3rd | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 3 | 4th | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1 |
Revazi Dugladze
Nikau Murray
Abele Atunasia